Seems like banh mi is having a bit of a resurgence! In addition to Banh Mi Yen Linh (Kingsway & St. Catherines), the new second location of Ba Le (Broadway & Fraser), and the new Chinatown location of DD Mau, a new “modern” banh mi place has taken over the old Tung Hing space on Kingsway & Inverness called “Bean Bánh Mì“. Why “bean”? It’s a family operation and “bean” (đậu) is the son’s nickname which in Vietnamese also means good fortune or prosperity or something like that ;). So they’ve ran with the whole “bean” theme in their marketing. Wicca and I checked them out during their first week of operation.

NOTE: they’re still in their soft opening phase, so things probably will change and hopefully improve!

In a nutshell: the bread needs a lot of work. Some components need to be tweaked. But a promising start with a lot of heart.

Few things have that uneasy mixture of luxury, guilt, and controversy as king crab does. Like spot prawns now, there used to be a mad king crab season rush in the Lower Mainland. But because we can’t have nice things, king crab prices are high and supply has become questionable (and possible illegal). So on that note, we recently celebrated a family reunion of sorts with king crab. I didn’t even see a menu during this dinner. My dad and relatives ordered, my dad paid, and I ate and appreciated like a number one son.

I purposely read very little about JC Poirier’s St. Lawrence restaurant, trying to ignore all the awards and acolades it’s won. (The most recent being JC being named one of the Foodies of the Year by Western Living Magazine. Side note: it feels like Western Living is stretching when they anoint the Superflux guys as being “Chill AF Dudes”…VanMag maybe, but Western Living?? Using “AF”??? Disclosure: I sometimes shoot photos for Superflux and they are indeed chill AF dudes.)

So walking in with no real expectations except for that JC has been part of some of the city’s best restaurants (Pourhouse, Pizzeria Farina, Ask for Luigi, Di Beppe), I thought, “how good can it be?”

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2 hours agoby dennisthefoodieE C C L E S C A K E S // I like but don't love sweets and pastries, but I do have a massive respect and fascination with this traditional #EcclesCake by #BlackberryHill at @vanmarkets . ("Eccles" rhymes with "heckles". I might love this mostly cuz I like the way "eccles cakes" rolls off the tongue.) Sweet currant filling and a sturdy flaky crusty pastry covered with sugar crystals, which reminds me of the best possible version of an 80s McDonald's apple pie. That kind of crust. Everything that Blackberry Hill makes is full of rustic charm. It's what

2 days agoby dennisthefoodieG I N J A N I N J A // A sparkly, zingy #GingerBeer by @dickiesginger at Riley Park @vanmarkets this morning. Thanks Stephen for the chat! Nong's Khao Man Gai is my fave chicken rice in the PNW, although it's a Thai take on HCR. That place at Aberdeen is Cafe D'Lite Express. If I find a great Hainanese chicken rice here, I'll be sure to post about it! It's about ALL the elements firing on all cylinders! #ginger#dickiesginger#yvr#vancouver